A history of Germany

Starters
1215, 1348, 1485, 1492, 1517, 1555, 1588, 1805, 1815 - why are these years important in European history?
Write down some facts that you know about the history of Germany outside the years 1900-1945

Learning Objective
To understand a brief outline of the history of Germany and its relations with Europe

Key Terms
Nation: a group of people united by a shared language, culture, history and ethnicity (often termed an ethnie) Nation-state: a political entity built around one nation (often not entirely homogenous) and a distinct historical term from nation Confederation: a group of entities (usually political) tied together by loose bonds of association

A pictorial history of Europe in the last 1000 years

Beginnings
Germany was known to the Romans as Germania. It was a land of various tribes known collectively as the Goths. They were one of various powerful European tribes, the others being the Franks, the Saxons, the Lombards and the Huns. Each of these tribes would eventually dominate large parts of Europe. The key figure in this early medieval part of European history was Charlemagne king of the Franks.

Charlemagne
Leader of the Franks Conquered an empire covering much of western and central europe Crowned Emperor of the Romans in 800 by the Pope Referred to as the Father of Europe

Development
Charlemagnes empire was split between his sons and the eastern part eventually fell to the Saxons. In 962 Otto I (The Great) was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by the Pope and the Empire was the most important power in Central Europe However, it was not an Empire per se, it was more a loose confederation of independent and semi-independent kingdoms, duchies, counties and smaller entities owing allegiance to the Emperor.

It grew to cover most of modern Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Hungary, The Czech Republic and the Netherlands.
The Emperor was (titularly at least) an elected leader chosen by the seven electors: The Archbishops of Mainz, Cologne and Trier, the elector of Saxony, the Count Palatine of the Rhine, the King of Bohemia and the Margrave of Brandenburg.

Situation in 1519
The Holy Roman Empire reached the zenith of its power in this period Charles V was elected and would be the last emperor to be crowned by the Pope (1530) Under this emperor, Germany became the powerhouse of the leading power in Europe

Charles V
Born 1500 to Philip the Handsome and Joanna the Mad Duke of Burgundy 1506 after his fathers death King of Spain in 1516 after the death of his grandfather Ferdinand II

Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 1519

Contemporary of Francis I of France and Henry VIII of England

Immensely rich and powerful, he was undone by one event

1517
What happened? This is the pivotal year in European History in the second Millennium The Reformation split Europe (particularly the HRE) with a largely Protestant North and West and a largely Catholic south The Wars of Religion (particularly Frances campaigns against the Huguenots and the 30 Years war) would dominate Europe for the next 150 years The emperors swung between Catholic and Protestant with the majority being from the Hapsburg family of Austria (Catholic)

Martin Luther
Usually credited with starting the Reformation (he did) However, the time was right for reform and he was building on the work of John Wycliffe in England, Jan Hus in Bohemia and Desiderus Erasmus in the Netherlands He was a German monk who had grave concerns with official church doctrines, particularly the ideas around indulgences. He was a firm believer in the doctrine of sola fide and the Priesthood of All Believers His work led to a major split and a more radical approach to religion which would dominate Europe for the next 150 years (No Luther, no Calvin, no Calvin no wars of religion in France. No Luther Henrician Reformation in England, no Henrician Reformation, no Protestant England etc)

Situation in 1715
By 1715, the two largest powers in Germany were
The house of Hapsburg in Austria and The house of Hohenzollern in Prussia (Technically BrandenburgPrussia)

Frederick William I of Prussia was leader of a poor and desperately sick kingdom (1/3 of the population died in 1708) but he built up the country which he left to his son, Frederick II, The Great following massive military and educational reforms
Prussia was able to begin a series of defeats of Austria in the 1740s and by the end of the Eighteenth Century was the preeminent power in Germany

Situation in 1815
In 1806, the Austrians had abdicated the crown of the HRE and it ceased to exist following defeats by Napoleon Prussia suffered defeats by Napoleon too but as part of the final coalition, their troops were the decisive factor in the Battle of Waterloo, leaving France defeated and the Prussians as the dominant military force in continental Europe

Germany?
Following the defeat of Napoleon, there was a conflict in Germany between Liberals and Conservatives. Prussia at this time was in the North German Confederation
Liberals wanted a united federal Germany with a democratic constitution, the Conservatives wanted a looser confederation to remain with the different crowns 1848 saw a series of revolutions in Europe and the introduction of a Prussian constitution. Three wars in the 1860s and 1870s brought about a unified Germany under Prussian leadership. The Second Schleswig War of 1864 saw the removal of Denmark as a real obstacle (Prussia fought with Austria), the Austro-Prussian war of 1866 saw Austrian power and influence diminished and the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 prompted Baden, Wurtemburg and Bavaria to join the German Empire, in 1871 Germany came into being

Key Points
Although Germany has only existed as a nation-state since 1871, the German Nation has existed for a far longer period This nation has dominated central Europe for much of the last 1500 years and at times has held sway over much more The borders of Germany are fluid in terms of history but certain territories remain constant (particularly Saxony, Bavaria and Brandenburg) Since the Napoleonic war there has been an inexorable drive towards a united Germany - the idea has at times but has often included a drive towards a unification of the German nation

Task
You will have 500 words to complete a concise history of Germany in the last 1000 years. You can, if you would prefer, use the period AD 1000 to AD 1871 I would like it done as a piece of prose